Over 100 BMCC Professors and Staff Join Middle States Self-Study Process and Launch

MIddle states meeting

MIddle states meeting
February 11, 2016

On February 5, 2016, BMCC launched its Middle States decennial self-study process, part of the college’s ongoing cycle of accreditation through the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), a unit of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

“As we implement our college-wide strategic plan, which will be published shortly, we will integrate departmental planning with the Middle States Self-Study process to identify specific opportunities and challenges,” said BMCC President Pérez in a message to the college community.

Over 100 faculty and staff have joined the BMCC Middle States Steering Committee and seven working groups. Their launch meeting on February 5 kicked off a two-year process that will culminate in the submission of BMCC’s Self-Study report to the MSCHE in Fall 2017. The college will also host a visit from the Middle States Evaluation Team in Spring 2018.

Senior Vice President and Provost Karrin Wilks and Professor of Science Lauren Goodwin are serving as steering committee co-chairs. “BMCC has always had great faculty and staff input into the process of maintaining accreditation,” Goodwin says. “This is an important opportunity for BMCC not only to assemble evidence about how we meet or exceed the Standards but also to take a hard look at ourselves and what we can do better,” said Wilks.

Christopher Shults, BMCC’s new Dean of Institutional Effectiveness and Strategic Planning, will be closely involved in the Middle States process and oversee its overall coordination.

“My first observation regarding the MSCHE launch was the festive and collegial nature of the event,” said Shults. “Secondly, I noticed that there was broad representation across each of the groups – all academic departments, individuals representing many units, and a mix of new and seasoned employees. Finally, as I was ‘floating’ to assist the groups with questions, I was impressed with the high level of expertise and camaraderie across departments and units. Our self-study is off to a great start and I am excited to be part of this team as we thoroughly examine our ability to enhance student learning, the environment for teaching and learning, and institutional operations over the next two years.”

 

The working committees are organized around the Middle States standards and chaired as follows:

Standard I, Mission and Goals, chaired by Maria Enrico, Chair of Modern Languages and Michael Hutmaker, Dean of Students;

Standard II, Ethics and Integrity, chaired by Bob Diaz, Vice President for Human Resources and Sangeeta Bishop, Chair of Social Sciences/Human Services/Criminal Justice;

Standard III, Design and Delivery of Student Learning Experience, chaired by Hollis Glaser, Chair of Speech/Communications/Theatre and Sarah Salm, Professor of Science;

Standard IV, Support of Student Experience, chaired by Ken Levinson, Chair of Academic Literacy & Linguistics and Marva Craig, Vice President of Student Affairs;

Standard V, Educational Effectiveness Assessment, chaired by Erwin Wong, Dean of Programs and Instruction and Anna Salvati, Assistant Professor of Computer Information Systems;

Standard VI, Planning, Resources and Institutional Improvement, chaired by John Montanez, Dean of Grants Administration and Scott Anderson, Vice President for Administration, and

Standard VII, Governance, Leadership and Administration, chaired by Sunil Gupta, Dean of Adult & Continuing Education and Janice Walters, Chair of Teacher Education.

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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

  • The Middle States Commission on Higher Education accredits degree-granting colleges and universities including those in New York
  • Over 100 faculty and staff have joined seven working groups and embarked on a two-year process to complete a Self-Study report for Middle States review by Fall 2017
  • BMCC will also host a visit from the Middle States Evaluation Team in Spring 2018

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